Haiti--A Harsh Christian Answer

When disaster and death strike, Christians often ask, “Where was God?” Isn’t Haiti, for instance, a Catholic (Christian) country? How could a loving God let such things happen? Christian clergy with Haitian congregations are being inundated by such questions now.
Pat Robertson has made himself an object of loathing and contempt for suggesting that part of Haiti’s problem may be an ancient compact with the devil himself. But anyone who is aware of the Judeo-Christian concept of God—as he is defined in Jewish (Old Testament) and Christian (New Testament) Bibles cannot dismiss Robertson’s statement out of hand.
Robertson may be out of line with modern Christians, but he is NOT out of line with Biblical Christianity. Christians only like to talk about half the things their Bible says about their God. The Biblical God defines himself as a “jealous God”—and as a God who has deliberately limited his own freedom to act in order to protect the right of humans to make choices.
God is portrayed as proprietary. He made humans. He describes his church as his “bride” and the Israelites as his people. In both instances he compares those who worship anything other than himself as adulterers, as cheating spouses, and sometimes he is blunt enough to call them “whores”. He takes a dim view of infidelity.
On the other hand, he has made a contractual agreement with humans. He made them to have some- one to talk to. He gave them the recreated earth to live in and on. It was humankind’s. Adam was to “dress, till and keep it”.
According to the Bible, Adam chose to violate that compact. He had the freedom to do so—to wrest earth from the protective hand of his God and give it to God’s great and ancient enemy, the devil. In turn, God stepped back and honored the new contract. (I present this as basic Christian theology, not as scientific reality.) He continued to love what he had created, but under the contract mankind had made with the devil thousands of years ago, God set limits upon himself.
For a brilliantly clear explanation of this, I refer anyone to either the book or the film, “Lion, Witch and Wardrobe”. Aslan (Christ) keeps his contract with the Witch (devil). She has ownership over that which she has claimed.
Many Christians prefer to talk about a God who “is love”. He is, but he is also a God who keeps whatever contract he has made. Or whatever contract man has chosen to make. There is a significant rub when you are referring to Haiti.
Christians don’t like to talk about that part of their theology. They prefer the novel’s definition of love as being—“never having to say you’re sorry”. That’s not the love of God as defined in both Christian and Jewish scriptures. The Biblical God loves—but he allows you the freedom to screw up. Do it often and willfully enough and he also punishes.
A core tenet of Christianity is allowing you screw up royally—having you say, “I’m sorry”—and then trying very hard not to do it again.

Punishment often consists of nothing more than having the consequences of your actions come home to roost. (Rather like a drunk who chooses to drive and wipes out his entire family. He cannot validly ask, “Where was God?” “If he’s so loving, why is my wife dead?”)
Whether Haitians actually made some sort of “pact with the devil” back in the 1790s is actually irrelevant. (Adam did that for them and for us all long before). No one question the fact that Haiti is and has been a nation (as they admit) that is “100% Catholic—Christian—and 90% Voodoo”. In the eyes of the Christian God that is infidelity, pure and simple. (Ask Tiger Woods’ wife what she thinks of a situation like this.)
Does this mean the Biblical God smacked Haiti with an earthquake? Probably not. He didn’t need to. Haiti is on a fault line—no doubt Haitians needed someone to PREVENT earthquakes. From a Biblical standpoint, they shook off their protector. They cheated on them. He stood back. Their Voodoo gods had neither interest nor power to protect.
Let’s talk tomorrow about the Christian God when he is UNABLE to help.